UNITED DFC is thrilled to announce that a superb tally of 15 of our players are on the hunt for a slot at next summer’s Canada Games in Niagara.

The first pools for the prestigious competition were named this week with U15AAA goalkeeper Olivia Harrison the youngest of our hopefuls in the Female Squad.

She is joined by clubmates Abbey Aucoin, Bryn Canning, Maddie Hatfield, Rachel Kibble, Rylin Matheson and Grace Pece.

In the Male Squad UDFC went one better with eight players now in the reckoning.

Last summer’s U17AAA squad has provided Toni Adeoye, Connor Burns, Max Marshall, Tommy McCormick, Nathan Tesfazion, Sam Veinotte, Geordie Wright and Paul Howlett for the Games reckoning.

The squads will be cut in January before the final 18-player selection to travel to the tournament, which runs from August 6-21 next year, is made in March.

United DFC Technical Director (Youth/Senior) Iain King said: “We are delighted that so many of our players are in the mix to go to Niagara and represent Nova Scotia at the Canada Games.

“On the female side it is terrific recognition for Olivia to be picked as an 07-born player and the group we have involved shows the stellar work done by Peter Lee, Jeff Aucoin and the coaches throughout that division of our club.

“The U17AAA boys, coached by Craig Sears and Kory Pike, have also produced a rich vein of talent as shown by eight of those players being in contention.

“Our players have to recognise, though, that this is just the first step. They have a winter of work ahead of them in the program to put themselves at the forefront of their coaches’ thinking come March.

“For now, though, their achievement needs to be marked and everyone in the UDFC family is very proud of every one of them.”

 

CANADA GAMES FEMALE SQUAD

 

Archibald , Mya	2005	SFC
Aucoin, Abigail	2004	UDFC
Bowser, Makenna	2004	SFC
Canning, Bryn	2006	UDFC
Crowe, Emma	2004	SFC
Davidson, Fiona	2004	DUN
Gallant, Sierra	2007	SFC
Hannaford, Grace	2004	SFC
Harrison, Olivia	2007	UDFC
Hatfield, Madalyn	2004	UDFC
Jack, Olivia	2004	SFC
Johnson, Maya	2005	CITY
Kibble, Rachel	2006	UDFC
Lancaster, Elliott	2005	SFC
MacDonald, Neila	2004	VU
Martin-Manuel, Niamh	2006	SFC
Matheson, Rylin	2004	UDFC
Mombourquette, Leah	2006	HCU
Olaco, Josetiarainnah	2004	CITY
Pece, Grace	2004	UDFC
Provo, Jamie	2006	SFC
Sarty, Sierra	2006	DUN
Vidito, Hannah	2004	SFC
Wagg, Reegan	2006	HCU
Yuke, Liberty	2005	SFC

 

 

 

CANADA GAMES MALE SQUAD

 

Adeoye, Toni	UDFC	2004
Amoah-Gyekye, Nathan	SFC	2005
Burns, Connor	UDFC	2004
Chaisson, Lochlen	SFC	2004
Chipudhla, Zik	SFC	2004
Denis, Aidan	SFC	2004
Facey, Caden	HCU	2005
Fattall, Yousef	DUN	2005
Hayne, Myers	SFC	2004
Langille, Nathaniel	HCU	2004
Larsen, Ethan	SFC	2004
Legere, Dylan	HCU	2004
Marshall, Max	UDFC	2004
McCormick, Thomas	UDFC	2004
Noko, Lefika	HCU	2005
Rodee, Shea	CITY	2004
Salawu, Mumbarak	CITY	2004
Sneddon, Adam	CITY	2006
Tesfazion, Nathan	UDFC	2005
Van Wychen, Isaac	SFC	2005
Veinotte, Sam	UDFC	2004
Wahdan, Moe	DUN	2005
Wright, Geordie	UDFC	2004
Zeina, Mo	HCU	2005

 

 

 

 

HALIFAX WANDERERS’ Canadian Premier League stars Akeem Garcia, Alex Marshall and Cory Bent are spreading their knowledge of the Beautiful Game to Dartmouth soccer players with local club United DFC.

The Wanderers trio have been enlisted as guest assistant-coaches with the club and were involved in their first sessions at the BMO Soccer Centre on Monday night.

Last season’s CPL Golden Boot winner Garcia worked with UDFC’s U17 AAA Boys squad alongside the team’s coaches Craig Sears and Kory Pike.

Trinidad and Tobago international Akeem, whose goals helped fire Wanderers to the CPL Final last season, was impressed with the skills shown by the boys.

And after awarding the session MVP to gifted midfielder Tommy McCormick, he said: “I’ve learned in my time in Nova Scotia that there are some big young talents in this province.

"It was great to work with them in my first session and I really enjoyed the experience.

"They tuned in and listened and it was fun to be the coach on the field instead of the player for a change!”

Elsewhere at BMO Jamaican international winger Alex Marshall, training hard now to be ready for the new CPL season’s kick-off in May, worked with United DFC’s U15 AAA Girls.

Head Coach Jeff Aucoin and his assistants Katie Aucoin and Katie Heckman relished having Alex alongside them for the night as their talented crew got to work.

Alex awarded his session MVP to livewire Regional Excellence program midfielder Rachel Kibble and he said: “I was really impressed with the skill level and the identity Jeff and his coaches have stamped on the squad.

"They all want to play the right brand of soccer and pass the ball and it was an intense session.”

The UDFC U17 AAA Girls had Wanderers’ star forward Cory Bent in their session working with Head Coach Peter Lee and his trusted assistant Jane Caudle.

Englishman Cory, a USports title winner in his days at Cape Breton University, now knows the soccer scene in Nova Scotia inside-out.

He judged midfielder Abby Aucoin as the most valuable player on the night and he said: “When you are in sessions with youth players what you want to see is that they are being coached in the right way to play positive soccer.

"I certainly saw that with Peter’s team and as an attacking player it’s the kind of way I like to see players developed, so they are organised but also enjoy the freedom and joy of the game.”

Getting the Wanderers players involved as assistant coaches with squads throughout United DFC is part of an initiative designed with Vice President of Football Operations Matt Fegan to forge lasting links between Halifax’s pro franchise and Dartmouth’s leading youth club.

Matt was delighted to see the success of Night One and he said: "We are happy to see our players connecting with clubs in our community and giving their time and experience back to the next generation of local players.

"This is also a great opportunity for our players' own career development. As coaches, they will see the interaction of coach and player from a different perspective that can help their own development as professionals to bring back into their own training."

United DFC Technical Director (Youth and Senior) Iain King believes the local youth clubs having a positive relationship with the CPL franchise can only help the fledgling league in the long-term. 

And he said: ”Akeem, Alex and Cory were terrific with the players, they all did Q and A sessions at the end of practice and handed out signed UDFC water bottles to our MVPs which the players loved.

"It’s part of our mission at the club to create a culture of learning for the players, we are constantly looking at ways to aid their development at all levels and this initiative is a part of that.

"There was real intelligence in the questions being fired at the Wanderers boys and when you are a teenager growing up in the game it’s invaluable to have international players on the field with you passing on their wisdom.

"That’s the sort of experience you can’t buy and it’s great that our local pro club has the vision to see that.”